LONG-TAILED PIGEONS 2139 



ing of pigeons having a broken egg smeared over the feathers, as I have done, when 

 no nest was to be seen. ' ' Some of the species of Columba found in the islands of 

 the Pacific are more brilliant in coloring, and among these may be mentioned C. albi- 

 gularis of New Guinea, in which the plumage is blackish slate color, with the edges 

 of the feathers metallic purple changing into green, and the cheeks and throat white. 

 The third genus, Nescenas, with one species (N. meyeri) from Mauritius, is distin- 

 guished by having the first flight feather equal to the sixth. The plumage is pale 

 pink, darker on the mantle, and shading into brown on the back and wings, while 

 the tail is uniform cinnamon color. The last genus, Turturtzna, contains five of the 

 smallest species of this group, not exceeding the common dove in size, with the 

 the hind-neck brilliantly ornamented with metallic colors. They inhabit Africa, 

 and differ from other Columbina in having the sexes often very dissimilar in plum- 

 age. 



The second subfamily, Macropygiince ^ or long-tailed pigeons, of 

 p~. ai Southeastern Asia and the islands of the Pacific, may be distinguished 



by having the tail longer than the wings, in which respect they re- 

 semble the migratory pigeon, the type of the third section of this family, while they 

 differ from it in having the feathers of the tail broad and round at the tip. Four 

 genera, including thirty species, are recognized, although little has been recorded of 

 their habits. Of the first genus, Turaccena, the two species have the bill fairly 

 strong, and the tail moderately rounded, the outer feathers being much more than 

 half the length of the middle pair. The Celebean species ( T. menadensis) has the 

 plumage slate black, with the face and throat white, while in the one from Timor 

 (7". modesta) it is uniform slate color, both being ornamented with shades of 

 metallic green, lilac, and blue. 



The great majority of the long-tailed pigeons belong to the genus 

 s Macropygia, commonly known as cuckoo pigeons. All have the tail 



much graduated and wedge shaped, the outer feathers being less than 

 half the length of the middle pair, and the general color of their plumage is rufous, 

 chestnut, or cinnamon. In the Indian cuckoo pigeon (M. tusalia) the male has 

 the plumage of the forehead, chin, and throat vinaceous buff, the top of the head 

 and rest of the upper parts shining metallic green with purple and bronze reflec- 

 tions, the latter being also irregularly barred with black and purple chestnut; the 

 under parts are vinous gray shading into buff on the abdomen, and glossed on the 

 chest with golden green and bronze; the quills are brown, and the middle pair of 

 tail feathers barred with black and vinous chestnut, while the outer pairs are mostly 

 gray. The female is not so brightly colored, and has most of the under parts barred 

 with brownish black. This bird is of a shy disposition, keeping to thick forest, and 

 associating in small flocks which feed chiefly on trees and seldom descend to the 

 ground. In Nipal the two white or sometimes creamy eggs are laid in May and June, 

 and the nest, which is the usual loose platform of sticks, is placed on some horizon- 

 tal branch, at no great height from the ground. 



In the other two genera the bill is strong and thick, and the tail 



wedge shaped, as in Macropygia. The first of these, Reinwardt&nas , 

 distinguished by having no crest, contains three species, ranging from Celebes to 



